A blog dedicated to the discussion of topics relating to the history of Sandusky and Erie County, Ohio, the Lake Erie Islands, and nearby communities; inspired by the collections of the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center and Follett House Museum. A service of the Sandusky Library.

Friday, August 31, 2012

A View of East Washington Row in the summer of 1955

A snapshot taken by Helen Hansen on August 20, 1955 shows several buildings in downtown Sandusky on East Washington Row. At the corner of East Washington Row and Columbus Avenue is the Western Security Bank building, just across the street from the old LaSalle’s store. The 1955 Sandusky City Directory lists the occupants of the upper levels of the bank building, which included several insurance agents, a title company, and offices for lawyers George A. Beis and Robert W. Beamer. Doctors William F. Burger, Carle Koehler, Emerson Hoyer, and Homer C. Fout also had offices above the Western Security Bank. The Walter L. Crusey furniture store was located at 117 East Washington Row. A Kroger’s grocery store took up 135 to 145 East Washington Row. Parking for Kroger’s was beside Mary’s Diner. The Washington building takes up the rest of the block of East Washington Row. On the street level of the Washington building were: Rosino’s Shoes, Singer Sewing Machine Company, and the Ohio Fuel Gas Company. There were a number of offices on the upper levels of the Washington Building, including accountants, insurance agents, the Camp Fire Girls, Boy Scouts of America, Judson Civil Engineering, Dr. Sheldon R. Hoover, and William E. Didelius, Erie County Prosecuting Attorney.

Prior to a massive fire in 1909, the Mahala Block took up a large portion of East Washington Row in Sandusky.

2 comments:

Dr. William F. Burger was our family doctor. I can remember as a child going to his office on the third floor of the Western Security Bank building. This Dr. Burger was not to be confused with Dr. Oscar Burger, who was an Optometrist. His office was in the first block of Huron Ave., across the street from a little City park where during WWII there was a wooden shelter where servicemen could "hitch" rides back to their base. A similar shelter was in the West End, on Tiffin Ave., for soldiers hitching rides back to Camp Perry.

In my prior post, I should have mentioned that the Washington Row location for Rosino's Shoe Store was their second location. It had previously been on Columbus Avenue but moved when JC Penney expanded. My first job, at age 14 was working Saturdays at Rosino's, dusting the shelves and putting collapsed cardboard boxes into the baler located in the cellar. Our family always bought our shoes at Rosino's, and we kids enjoyed putting our feet into the store's X-ray machine to see if there was enough room in the shoes we were buying.